


Coffees and dahlias

by Marta_jtp



Category: Julie and The Phantoms (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Friendship, Lots of Music, Music, Not Beta Read, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Set in 2020
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-20
Updated: 2020-10-05
Packaged: 2021-03-07 21:09:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 14
Words: 15,407
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26564143
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Marta_jtp/pseuds/Marta_jtp
Summary: Luke works during the summer in a coffee shop to earn some money so he can dedicate himself body and soul to the band.Julie continues with her piano lessons and spends the afternoons with her friends in her mother's cafeteria.And it may be difficult to see it at first, but they know deep down that they would make a great team.
Relationships: Alex/Willie (Julie and The Phantoms), Julie Molina/Luke Patterson
Comments: 160
Kudos: 411





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> English is not my first language. And this is the first thing I write, so I hope it's not too bad.
> 
> I just have fallen too deep on this fandom. I'm in love with the series and the characters and I need this.
> 
> Hope you like it!

Serving coffees was the last thing Luke wanted to do. But of course, he needed a job and few sites were willing to hire him.

After the fight with his parents, he spent a whole night wandering the cold streets of the city. When he couldn't take it anymore, he went to the only place that crossed his mind: the studio where they rehearsed. At least it was a place sheltered from the wind and cold. So he started living there.

During the school year he could not do much to work, between classes, rehearsals and performances he did not have the time. But with the arrival of summer, he had to do something he would never have imagined: be responsible. He couldn't depend on the kindness of his friends forever. So he looked for a job.

They were looking for waiters at a downtown cafeteria, so that's where Luke went. With a fake smile and little real desire to get the job. Fortunately or unfortunately he got it.

Actually the site was not that bad. It was pretty quiet, there weren't many people. Except in the afternoons, when classes at a nearby music academy ended. The students went there a lot. Partly because of the piano that was available to anyone, partly because of the open mic nights, partly because of that handsome waiter with the charming smile...

And although serving coffee was not something Luke appreciated, he loved working Friday nights. Lots of talented people walked up and down the stage laughing and clapping. Rarely had he enjoyed so much music that he did not play himself. It wasn't his style, and that's why they didn't perform there, but it was undeniable that everyone there was pretty good.

Especially the piano girl. 

Luke called her that, although he knew perfectly well that her name was Julie, not for nothing was she the daughter of his boss. But she liked that nickname, it was perfect for her because of the way her fingers moved over the keys. She didn't usually play, only when they were closing and it was almost exclusive sessions for his mother and a few friends. And Luke.

She had never waited for him to leave, as she did with the rest. She had never looked at him badly or uncomfortable because he listened. And Luke appreciated it with all his heart.

He would never admit it, but she inspired him. The way she moved, her voice, her melodies (many originals)... Luke had imagined himself playing beside her more times than he was willing to admit. From the first day he saw her play. There was something about her, a magic or something like that that called him.

"Have you finished yet?" Rose's voice took him out of his thoughts and he reluctantly took his eyes off Julie. In theory he was finishing collecting everything to close, although he had not done anything for several minutes.

"It's got a little left," he murmured, pointing to the dishwasher, the last one of the night.

"Great," she said nodding his head. “Hey Luke, I wanted to ask you a favor. I know it's a little weird and of course it's okay if you say no… ”Before she could go on, the boy cut her off laughing.

"You know you can ask me for anything, that's what I'm here for."

“But it has nothing to do with the cafeteria. You see, next week is Julie's birthday and Ray and I are throwing a little surprise party for her." Luke frowned, not sure where Rose wanted to go, but nodded when he saw that she kept her gaze fixed on him. “The point is that the band that I booked cannot make it in the end, because their drummer is sick. So I thought you might want to play there."

Luke's confused face had to be so exaggerated that Rose momentarily panicked, she didn't seem quite sure what to say.

“Of course we will pay you. And I have never seen you guys play, but I have heard you sing in the kitchen and you have a very beautiful voice. So I thought you might want to. And that way I’ll be able to meet your elusive friends. And I know that Julie would be excited, deep down she likes you even though she hasn't talked much to you." Luke's heart skipped a beat at those words and he finally seemed to regain speech.

"Sure! We would love it. When is it?"

"Tomorrow. I know it's a short time notice, and I understand if you want to back down. But… ”

“No, of course not. Tell me the address and we will go without fail."


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short, kind of a filler one, but the next one is the party, so...
> 
> Again, english is not my first language, hope it's not too bad.
> 
> Hope you like it!

"You're the best bandmate"

"The best one"

"Great, man"

The compliments and the happy faces of his bandmates made Luke laugh. He didn't think that their joy would last long when they found out where they were going to play, but for now it was nice to see the three of them so happy and excited.

"Calm down, it's not a concert "

"But it's a performance at a party. Surely someone who can get us more gigs will see us there. It will be great." Alex commented smiling. He got up from his place behind the drums and sat next to Regie who was muttering something about a bunch of pretty girls that were sure to be around with a goofy grin.

“In any case, now we have to decide what to play, '' Luke commented, pulling out his notebook. "I think that the best option is Now or Never, it is the one we have most recent and it is fun to play."

“And are they going to like it? Didn't you say they were all posh kids from the music academy? " Bobby asked with a grimace of distaste. Luke could partially understand him, if it hadn't been because it was Julie's birthday he wouldn't be happy either, but it was a special case.

“Well, they go to the academy, yes. But they are not that bad. And if Rose has hired us, I suppose it's because she thinks they'll like us. Plus, at least they’ll pay us.”

The rest of the day was spent rehearsing and then picking up their instruments. Luke was so nervous he kept making rookie mistakes. The notes were off, he entered at the wrong times and he had even gotten confused with the lyrics. He had written the songs and was still getting them mixed up!

When they had it all in Bobby's van he sat in the back to relax, with Regie right next to him. Even he must have realized that something was wrong with him.

"You're good? Even if you do it badly, I don't think your boss will say anything,” he commented, trying to encourage him. Apparently they had decided that his problem was that he was afraid of being fired out of work. Well, it was better than admitting the truth. “She sounds like a cool person. I don't think she’ll get mad or anything."

"No, Rose is great. The only thing that worries me is that we haven't played in front of people for a long time. At least in front of people who want to listen to us. As soon as we start, it’ll go away for sure. "

The swaying of the truck made them both laugh as they rounded a slight turn too fast, and their conversation quickly turned to more relaxed topics. They were planning an outing to the beach the following weekend. Just the four of them. They would turn the back of the van into a makeshift “tent” and dine under the stars. That way they could take the time to continue with the songs. And to relax, it could do no harm.

When they reached the address Rose had given him, Luke walked to the door and knocked with a smile. When it was opened, a short boy appeared on the other side, looking confused at him.

"Are you the boyband? My mother says that you can carry the instruments over there and that she’ll help you put everything together." With his hand he pointed to a path that disappeared between the house and the fence and was clearly heading towards a back garden.

"Who are you calling boyband?" Luke replied, looking him badly. The boy didn't even bother to answer. He slammed the door in his face and left Luke confused and with an idiotic face.

When he managed to react, he went back to the van. Between all of them they lowered the drum boxes and speakers first, luckily those had wheels. Then they took the rest of the instruments, placed them on top, and went the way the boy had indicated.

The first obstacle was found a few meters ahead: there were stairs to access the garden. Luke could have sworn Alex almost burst into tears. Between the four of them everything went down little by little. They did it with two trips and a lot of sweat.

Then they just had to keep walking to what looked like a garage. There was Rose, next to whom Luke assumed was her husband because he went to the cafeteria from time to time.

"Just in time!" She exclaimed with a smile approaching them. “Nice to meet you, guys. I am Rose. Thank you very much for accepting this in such a short time."

"A real pleasure. I'm Regie, by the way ”said the bassist taking a step towards her and putting on his best seductive smile. Although this disappeared when they were approached by her husband, who introduced himself as Ray.

Between the four musicians, Rose and Ray they all placed all the instruments in their place and after checking that everything was working correctly the six of them sat down to rest a bit. There was a little less than an hour left before people started arriving, so they had earned it.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go with the third chapter, Julie's party.
> 
> Again, english is not my first language, hope it's not too bad and you like it!
> 
> Also, my house has become a sanctuary to the series. Between my sister and I, we have managed to only see the chapters in loop and for each thing we do we put the songs in the background. I've even seen my little sister writing her own fic, I'm super proud :’)

Fifteen minutes before seven, Julie's friends started to arrive. Luke already knew several from the   
cafeteria, he even knew some names, but did not get to speak with any of them.

The four of them were soon locked up in what turned out to be a studio. They were positioned right in front of the door, ready to start rocking when it was opened. For now they just waited. Julie would arrive at any moment, all her friends would surprise her and then they would play a couple of songs.

The bad part is that time was not passing fast enough and Luke was already getting nervous. Every few seconds he would peek through the windows in the door. Just to see that everything remained the same.

Right behind him his friends were checking that the instruments were in tune and that the microphones were still working well. Which was actually pretty pointless, because barely a few minutes had passed since the sound check. But checking again it didn't hurt.

Suddenly all the lights in the garden went out and there was silence. Julie must be arriving. After a couple of minutes of tense silence, the shouts of joy and surprise began. That meant that they’ll be entering soon.

"Ready?" He asked, turning to look at his friends.

“Definitely. It's going to be great” Reggie replied with a huge smile.

"We're going to teach them what good music is" added Bobby.

Rose's voice came from outside. She was introducing them and soon between her and Ray opened the studio doors. Outside, a semicircle of people had formed looking at them, some of them pointing at them with their mobiles.

"Hi," Luke said looking for Julie with his eyes. When he found her he gave her his best smile and then continued speaking. "We are Sunset curve and we are going to play one of our original songs: Now or never. We hope you like it."

As they had been rehearsing for weeks, he first began with the guitar and then his bandmates entered. Right away they were jumping on the spot, giving their all as if this were a performance in some stadium and not in a back garden.

In front the guests jumped with them, and a couple of those who passed by the cafeteria pointed to him between astonished and amused. Luke only looked away from them when Reggie approached him to sing together into the same microphone. After a couple of lines he pushed him back to his own mic and continued with a huge smile.

They hadn't played in front of anyone for a long time and adrenaline was rushing through their veins. They missed it a lot, but finding time or people who wanted to hire them was not easy. That is why they lived each performance as if it could be the last.

When they hit the final notes, turning to Alex who made a final roll, they felt a bit empty. But they were left with the applause of the guests, for whom they bowed.

"Thank you very much. And happy birthday, Julie ”said Luke smiling at her, being chanted by his bandmates.

After that they played a couple more songs before picking it up. A part of them felt sad when they put the instruments away, but on the other hand it meant that they could join the party and eat something. That got them cheered up.

"It was epic!" Alex exclaimed, hitting Reggie on the back.

"Totally. And all those girls? It’s awful that you didn't invite us to the cafeteria before ”added the bassist, keeping his eyes fixed on the group of people outside. "Speaking of girls..."

In that moment, Rose, Julie and Flyn, the second’s best friend, Luke had never seen them separated, entered the studio.

"That was great guys!" Exclaimed the older, smiling. “You have to come some night to play in the cafeteria, we can put on some more instruments and have open mic nights. What do you think?"

"Sure, we'd love to!" He replied after exchanging a few glances with his friends, who nodded somewhat excitedly. Deep down, any performance was a great opportunity, wherever it was.

"You are very good," Julie repeated with a smile. "You have a very good voice." She added with her eyes fixed on Luke, which made his smile go goofy.

"Thank you. Although I think that of those present I am not the one with the best voice” he commented before restraining himself.

"Oh, one day we could sing something together Julie!" Her friend exclaimed excitedly. “You see, we already have our own group, but it would be nice to all play together one day. We’re lacking a band."

Before they could respond, more people began to enter. They wanted to congratulate them and take pictures with them. Before Luke knew it, Julie had left without saying goodbye. And, although he would never admit it, from that moment on his smile was a little less sincere in the photos.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't stop myself, I just want them to be happy and in love. Well, second chapter of the day, hope it's not to bad because I've just wrote it in like an hour.
> 
> So there's probably a lot of mistakes, forgive me.
> 
> Hope you like it!

“So in addition to being handsome he is talented. That's not fair.” Flyn and Julie left the studio when people began to enter, it was becoming overwhelming. Now they were sitting at one of the tables that their parents had set up there for food.

"Really?" Julie replied with a silly laugh. Her eyes were still fixed on Luke, who was now posing with two girls from her singing class.

“Don't pretend you haven't been drooling over her beautiful eyes for almost two months. And those biceps… don't get me started, girl." The two burst out laughing and Julie tried to silence her friend, so that no one would hear them. “But I mean it, they are very good. I don't understand why he didn't come up to sing in the cafeteria before."

"Probably because he is working."

That was the excuse behind which Julie hid for not having spoken with him. Although she went to the cafeteria every afternoon, the only words she said were to order her drink and thank him. The rest of the time was spent observing him from afar. 

Like her, half the girls in her classes went there just to see the waiter. He was really popular, and really handsome, as well as charming. But Julie did not dare to speak with him face to face. She was too embarrassed, so she started playing the piano. Obviously she hadn't told him, but she was playing for him.

Julie only went up to the piano when the cafeteria was almost empty. As much as she did not care in class, she was not yet ready to play in front of an audience. But in front of Luke and his friends, that was something else. That way she did dare to bare his soul and let his songs flow, to make themselves known to other people's ears, to be heard and analyzed by someone else.

Playing for them was magical, special. It made her feel good no matter how scared she was before and after. As her fingers moved and the letters flowed, she stopped being afraid, there was only her and the piano. Nothing else mattered. At least not until the song was over and her friends reappeared before his eyes. His friends and Luke.

At that moment the four boys left the studio and walked over to where they were sitting. They were looking for a table to sit at, and before they could go to another one Flyn called for them to sit with them.

"You are some superstars" he said smiling when they sat down. “I had no idea you could sing like that, coffeboy. From now on it would be cool if you sing the menu to me.” It was clear that he was making fun of him, and Julie could not help laughing at the face that Luke made.

"Wow, real funny," he replied right after, trying to regain his composure. That only made them laugh more, even his friends. Right after his words he turned to look at Julie, making a face towards her to show how "annoyed" he was with Flyn.

The gesture left the girl paralyzed for a moment. He had done it especially for her, he wanted her to feel included in what he felt. Although it was something so silly she did get excited. That is precisely why she had to look away, somewhat flustered.

She met his gaze with Flyn and gave her a discreet nod, trying to ask her to help her not to look like an idiot in front of them.

“And where are we going to be able to see you again? Truth is that I’m wanting to listen to more songs” commented Flyn, making the four boys smirk. Getting the attention of a musician was very simple. It was talking about their music and all of them, including Julie, forgot everything else.

"Good question. We continue working on it." Luke replied with a shrug.

"But of course we will let you know as soon as we know something" added the bassist with a wink. At that everyone at the table laughed, except for the drummer who just rolled his eyes with a slight smile.

"You said the songs are original" Julie commented under Luke's watchful eye. "Are yours?"

"Well, we all participated and helped write them," he replied, looking away.

"No way. We are obviously there to help a bit, but with the tune. The letters are his. But only because he refuses to use my songs. "

“For the last time Reggie, we are not playing country. Please stop trying” Begged beside him the drummer. 

After that the four of them began to joke, fondly throwing insults and pushing each other just enough to move the chairs. It was clear that they loved each other in the same way that she loved Carlos. They loved each other as brothers. Annoying brothers who liked to nibble.

But Julie was no longer paying attention to them, she could only think about the songs. They were very good, especially for a band that had just started. It was clear that they had talent, to play and to compose. She couldn't get the lyrics of the songs out of her head. She couldn't stop wondering where Luke got his inspiration, how he wrote.

The normal curiosity that she had been feeling for him for some time was now mixed with a new, even stronger curiosity. A curiosity to meet not only the handsome boy, but the musician. A musician with whom she somehow felt comfortable and connected, even though they hardly knew each other.

The rest of the night was spent with laughter and food, congratulations and lots of presents. It was a great birthday, Julie was so happy that when it was her turn to make a wish in front of the candles she stood for a moment. 

What more could I ask for?

At that thought her eyes went to Luke, who was sitting with his friends at a nearby table and had been singing at the top of his lungs, which was a lot.

At that moment, all Julie wanted was an opportunity to get to know him better, to sing with him. Ideally even to write with him. All she wanted was a little more Luke in her life, so that's what she asked for.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't even know what I'm doing or where is this going, but whatever.
> 
> Sorry for taking so long, yesterday was my birthday and I was kind of busy, but here I go again...
> 
> Hope you like it! ^-^
> 
> I haven't checked this but it's late and I need sleep, so sorry for the mistakes

Mondays were pretty quiet days in the cafeteria. People used to be tired and unwilling to make a fuss.

At least normal Mondays.

Unfortunately for Luke, that was not a normal Monday. When the people from the academy began to arrive, it was clear that they had liked their music at the party. 

There were a ton of great comments that just inflated Luke's ego. They congratulated him on the songs and how good his performance was. They asked him if they were going to play again soon, and they asked him for the name of his YouTube channel (it was probably time to open one). After so long being ignored Luke was in cloud nine.

The bad part was also all the attention he was getting. Plus, it was awkward that all that attention came while he was working. He couldn't concentrate on ordering right if a pretty girl would come up every so often to ask for a photo, and incidentally for his number.

It was very uncomfortable, and more because Luke was not sure how to stop them without looking too edgy, after all they needed to create a fan base, so he just smiled and was as charming as he could despite everything.

The worst thing actually was that certain people had not yet passed through the cafeteria. Or a certain person, rather. For some unknown reason Julie had not gone that afternoon, despite the fact that the rest of the summer days she had gone without fail. For some reason that was bothering him a lot.

He'd already had a chance to talk to her at her party, and he'd already missed it enough. He didn't expect that she was going to tell him much more than he had, unlike his peers she didn't seem very interested in his band, or him.

It didn't really surprise him either. She hadn't shown any kind of interest in him, she didn't speak to him more than necessary and barely gave him a glance. Luke might have had some illusions about she letting him listen to her music, but that was probably because she didn't care if he was there or not, she just ignored him and that's it.

He obviously wasn't going to admit it, but he was hurt. It wasn't a surprise, but deep down Luke hoped she would come over to talk to him. Those who were not expected to come to talk to him instead were his friends.

When the door opened and the three entered laughing Luke knew that nothing good could come out of it. As they approached the counter, several of the party attendees pointed to them and began to murmur, if it had not been enough so far, they would make it worse.

"What are you doing here?" He asked as they approached, unable to contain a smile. Deep down, seeing them always made him happy, despite everything else or all the worries he might have.

"Well, we didn't come to buy a piano, if that's what you're asking," Alex replied with a similar smile.

"It's just that we got bored and came for coffee," Bobby added, staring at one of the tables occupied by the boys from the academy.

"Well, I have a break in a bit, if you wait for me I'll have a drink with you"

"Great!" Alex exclaimed with a smile. “Give us three coffees and we'll wait for you there. Come on, Reggie ”, he said, pulling the latter who had been looking spellbound at a few girls who were recording themselves with their mobile.

For the first time in the afternoon Luke was feeling better, and his smile did not disappear as he turned to prepare his friends' drinks. When he had the three cups ready, he placed them on a tray and took them to the table they occupied.

"You're a pro," Bobby scoffed, opening a sugar packet. "That way of walking and smiling ... I'm even tempted to tip you"

Luke was unable to reply, because at that moment the entrance bell rang. He grimaced at his friend and turned to go back to the counter. Only when he turned around his eyes ran into Julie and Flyn standing in the doorway.

He stood there paralyzed until Alex gave him a shove from behind, causing laughter from his friends. He may have blushed a little, and the tray may have nearly fallen from his hands because they had started to sweat. But there was no proof of any of that. So it just may have been or not.

“Welcome. What do you want?" He asked them once he was in his place. Although he might as well have been talking only to Julie, since his eyes did not leave her. 

"Won't you sing to me? What a disappointment." Flyn's teasing got him to look at her for the first time.

"I want the usual," Julie murmured, hitting her friend on the shoulder.

"Unnecessary. And I just want a piece of cake,” she said at the end.

"On the way, can I take it to you?"

"No thanks, we’ll wait," Flyn chimed in before she could say anything. Luke watched out of the corner of his eye as he scanned the entire room until he seemed to find what he was looking for. "Well, I am sitting down. Okay, Julie?"

Before she could answer, Flyn crossed the cafeteria to the table where his friends were; but where only Alex remained. For some reason that made Reggie mad, many of the girls went to him first, but they were always disappointed.

"That's a bad idea," he commented to Julie, putting his cup on one of the trays.

"Does he already have a girlfriend?" She asked, looking into his eyes for the first time.

"Eh no. No, but he has a boyfriend,” he commented with a smile. "Always happens. We don't know why, but despite being gay, he is the one girls like the most."

At the table the two were talking, until Alex did something that did not cause Luke to drop Flyn's cake by mere luck: he took out his phone and handed it to the girl with a huge smile for her to write down her number.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not sure of what's happening, I just need more hours of sleep.
> 
> So sorry for the more than possible mistakes. Hope you like it!

Dragging Julie to the cafeteria that afternoon hadn't been easy. First, she was embarrassed, then she had other things to do (lies) and if that weren’t enough she started composing at the piano and there was no one alive that could move her from there.

By the time they finally walked through the door, Flyn was a little tired of her friend's attitude. So she started her turn to mess with her a bit, lovingly though. That was why as soon as he had made fun of Luke a little and had the opportunity she left them alone and went to sit with one of his friends, with the drummer whose name she did not remember.

"Hello?" He greeted with a frown.

“Hi, I'm Flyn, we met at the party. Maybe you’ll take me a bit for crazy, but my friend likes your friend ”, she said directly, she had no time to lose. "And since I am the best friend in the world I come here to ask you if he is available and possibly interested or if I should make her forget it."

"What?" Flyn could almost see the gears turning inside the boy's head. "You mean Luke?" He finally asked.

"Obviously," she said, pointing discreetly over her shoulder to where the two of them, at the counter sat looking somewhat uncomfortable.

“Oh, he doesn't have a girlfriend, no. And I'd say she likes your friend, actually. Seeing how he gets every time she's involved. "

"Seriously? Great! Now it only remains to get them together. Either that or tease them until they're fed up, whichever comes first in my case,” Flyn said laughing. The truth is that no matter how much encouragement she gave her friend, she was not very sure that she would be reciprocated. Knowing it was like that made her happy.

“Okay, not that I have anything better to do with my free time. Here,” he said, pulling out his mobile with a big smile to pass it to the girl. "Write down your number so we can plan things without them knowing."

“You are an evil mind, blond guy. I like it” she commented laughing. She saved her number and returned the phone just in time, because a second later another of the other guys from the band arrived at the table. The other guitarist if she remembered correctly.

"Why always you?" He asked his partner with an incredulous face.

"And why not? Let me live” he laughed, throwing him an empty sugar sachet that was on the table. It was clear that the other boy was going to respond, but before he could, a voice interrupted them.

"Hey, don't make a scene here, I have to clean later" Luke and Julie arrived at the table with a tray in which he carried the order of the girls and another extra cup, which was clearly for him, seeing that he sat down in one of the free chairs. "Where is Reggie?" He asked after a second. After his words, he turned to look for him around the room with a worried face.

“He's only in the bathroom. We are not idiots, ”Alex said before he could get more nervous.

"I am not so sure about that" he finally replied, sitting back comfortably.

"Are you staying with us, Luke?" Julie asked him, who had sat next to him and was holding her cup carefully.

"Eh yes. I have a break and you know, I take the opportunity to be with my friends and all ”. Luke's gaze remained fixed on Julie and that's why he couldn't see how Flyn and Alex exchanged funny glances. The truth is that they were going to have a lot of fun at the expense of their friends.

That afternoon, in addition to getting someone to help her with her summer homework: finding Julie a boyfriend and specifically getting said boyfriend to be Luke; Flyn discovered that these four boys were actually quite cute and funny.

If she really achieved her goal at least she knew that she would have a good relationship with the friends of who would basically be her brother-in-law.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writing this I remembered why I write fanfics and not music, but whatever. Hope it's not too bad

[Flying girl, 17:28] I can't handle her. It doesn't pass this afternoon. I'm going to tell him because I can't stand another day hearing how handsome and wonderful he is.

[Me, 17:29] You are going to have it complicated. This afternoon he is not going to work.

In fact, Luke was sitting in the front seat of the van with Bobby, singing wildly with his friends. It was the first time he had skipped a day of work to go out with his friends instead. So he was happy. Very happy.

For their part, Reggie and Alex occupied the rear area. It had been a long time since they had removed the seats from there and in their place there was a large space, to place the instruments, and a kind of a side bench that the two boys now occupied.

[Flying girl, 17:31] EXCUSE ME? Why not?

[Flying girl, 17:31] Are you telling me I'm going to have to put up with her all weekend sad because she hasn't seen THE crush?

[Flying girl, 17:32] Because if that's what you’re saying I'd rather you kill me now

[Me, 17:32] I'm sorry, but yes. It's band weekend

[Flying girl, 17:32] I hate you

[Flying girl, 17:33] I hate him

[Flying girl, 17:33] I hate everything.

Alex couldn't help but laugh when he saw her messages. Throughout the week he had come to realize that Flynn was an interesting girl to deal with. But deep down he liked her. She was nice, interesting, and most of all, a good constant source of laughter.

[Me, 17:34] And here I was, going to try to convince Luke to do something... 

[Me, 17:34] But if you like me so badly I'd better let you suffer

[Flying girl, 17:34] NO

[Flying girl, 17: 35] Please do something. Whatever. ANYTHING

Alex started typing a reply, but before he could send it Reggie took the phone out of his hands.

“No phones. This weekend is just for us” he exclaimed, turning it off. Luckily he did that without bothering to read what was on the screen. It would have been weird to have to explain everything to him.

After that, he handed it back to him and continued singing. The truth is that Alex was excited for that weekend. It was a good opportunity to disconnect from his problems at home and write more music. The perfect opportunity to rest and enjoy his refuge.

When they got to the beach, the four of them jumped out of the van with shouts of joy. They had been waiting for this trip for a long time and the waves were calling them.

When the sunset came it found them sitting in a circle on the sand. They were finishing dinner taking advantage of the fact that almost no one was left there. As he finished his sandwich, Luke picked up his guitar and started playing distracted.

"That's a new one" Reggie commented after a while.

"It's just the melody, I can't find a letter that I like," he replied with a grimace. "Lately with work I don't have much time to write and I'm a bit stuck."

"Seriously?" Alex asked with an incredulous face. "Because every time I go to the study you are writing in the notebook."

"Uh, ah, right. Yes,” he murmured, looking away uncomfortably. “But those are not lyrics for the band. They are just things that I want to get out of my head. "

"Thoughts about a special girl?" Then the drummer asked mockingly.

"Of course not!" He replied quickly. Causing the laughter of his companions. It was too obvious that he was lying.

"And who is the unfortunate one?" Bobby asked when he could calm down a bit.

"Nobody! It's not important."

"Well, let's take a look at it." From the pocket of the guitar case Reggie took out Luke's notebook and opened it to a random page. He didn't even have time to blink before the guitarist jumped on him.

“My notebook is not touched without permission! I swear if you do it again I will cut your hair, Reginald! " He threatened, hugging the notebook as if it were his most valuable possession. And it probably was, either that notebook or the guitar.

"I'll be good, I swear" he exclaimed, hiding behind Alex.

“Okay, we won't touch it. But play us something then, Luke. It's only fair, ”Alex intervened. Deep down he just wanted to see if he was really writing love songs. If that was the case, he would not only tease him for months, but also get some information for him and Flynn to use.

Following the request there were a couple of minutes of attempts to refuse by Luke and many pleas by Reggie and Alex. They only stopped arguing when Bobby intervened.

"Enough. Please. You know they won't stop until you sing, so do it now, before you all give me a migraine."

Still reluctantly Luke braced himself for the taunts that would follow. One of the few songs that already had something like a melody was a love song. One he had written to Julie. A couple of weeks ago she had sung her own song, also a love song, and Luke couldn't help but write her a reply. 

It was a pretty bad song, he hadn't polished it yet and the lyrics were not entirely coherent. But that happened to him a lot when he wrote alone, which is why he liked to write with the boys.

Finally he began to play. 

It was a slow melody. It was not their usual style, but a ballad. Every note came out clearly from the guitar and after a brief introduction he began to sing. His voice wasn't made for that kind of tune, but it would have to do.

_ Tried to book some tickets to the moon, _

_ but find the time inopportune. _

_ Tried my luck. Heard the tune, _

_ found out it didn't matter soon. _

_ Now here I stand with your song. _

_ I can't fake being strong. _

_ I just hope you'll sing-along. _

_ 'Cause with me, is where you belong. _

As soon as he stopped playing Reggie began to clap excitedly while his other two friends burst out laughing. Luckily for Luke there was hardly any light left and they couldn't quite see how red he had turned, although they probably knew anyway.

"Oh my gosh, I think I got diabetes for that one," Bobby scoffed, still laughing.

"I liked it. Maybe we can put a little banjo on it and throw it around” suggested Reggie. His comment only caused Alex to hit him with his jacket.

"Enough. A weekend without country. I'm begging you. "

After that there were only laughter and a little more work for them. They needed new songs if they were really going to dedicate themselves to music, and since that was the plan they had no choice but to work on it.

When they retired to the van to sleep on bags that had been laid out in the empty space behind, Alex took the opportunity to grab his phone and write a message. He had twelve unread ones from Flynn and a couple from Willie, but he ignored them because he didn't have much time.

[Me, 23:46] Trust me, it's a matter of time.

After his message to Flynn, he took the opportunity to send another good night one to Willie, which he barely had time to send before Reggie tried to take the phone from him again.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm trying my best, but I'm not sure if this is making any sense. Any way, here I go again.
> 
> Hope you like it!
> 
> Also, anecdote time! So, I've been kinda obsessed with this serie, so I made my boyfriend watch it. And now I have a boyfriend named Charlie that can actually sing Unsaid Emily to me, so I guess I'm winning in life XD

Returning to the routine on Monday was a hard blow for all four. 

As neither of them had anything to do in the morning, they took the opportunity to sleep one last night together. But Luke had to work that afternoon so they couldn't delay the return any longer.

This trip did not have the songs or the emotion of the first one, but the four returned quite happy with their work. They had a handful of new songs to work with and a lot of hopes and dreams for the band.

That day Luke was in charge of leaving each of his friends at home before going to work. Luckily he could take the van, otherwise he would have been late. When he entered the door he found Rose carrying a box that seemed heavy.

"Careful, I'll take care of it," he said, approaching her to help.

"Just in time, I thought he was going to die right there," he said with a slight snort.

"What is this?" Lukel asked when he managed to lift the box, not without effort.

“New cups and some ingredients. But it seems to me that they have also put a few bricks. If not, I can not understand it".

Getting all the boxes to the back room, one at a time, took almost half an hour. So when he took up his usual position, many of the students from the music academy had already arrived. Between them he could see Julie and Flynn, who were already seated at a secluded table.

Luke may have been a little disappointed. He hadn't been able to speak to her since last Monday, and hadn't seen her since Thursday. And now he had missed the only time of day when they interacted a bit.

But there was little he could do. It was pretty clear that she wasn't interested in him. And Luke had too much self-esteem to go to her only to be rejected. So he just did what he did every day: pour coffee and take a discreet look or two at Julie. Just enough not to be creepy.

Fortunately or unfortunately, Monday was still a quiet day in the cafeteria. Which meant a lot of free time for him that he could only spend staring at the ceiling. Lucy, his partner, took advantage of the calm to take her break, and promising that she would return in less than twenty minutes, she left the cafeteria.

Time seemed to move even slower if possible after that, at least until Rose approached him with a worried face.

"I have to go. Sorry. Carlos has had an accident at the game and Ray is out of town,” she said quickly, looking for her daughter with her eyes. "I'm going to ask Julie to stay until closing," she continued giving him the keys. “Close as usual and then give those to her. I'm really sorry."

"Don’t worry. I can take care of closing. Go with your son, I’m sure it’s nothing" he said with a reassuring tone.

"You are a sunshine. You should tell your boss to raise your salary,” she said with a smile, before walking away from the counter.

"I'll tell her," he laughed.   
  
  


In another area of the cafeteria Julie had turned worriedly to look at her mother when she saw that she was so accelerated. When she approached them and told them what had happened to his brother, she couldn't help but worry.

“I know, but I need you to stay. Luke is in charge of locking, but I need the keys tomorrow morning. You just have to wait and he’ll give them to you. As soon as I know something about your brother, I'll text you," she said, leaving a kiss on his daughter's head. "Bye, Flynn, say hi to your parents for me."

After that their afternoon passed like any other. Flynn kept trying to get her to go talk to Luke, and Julie refused because she didn't see the point. She preferred not to be directly rejected by him, that would make coming to the cafeteria very weird. And uncomfortable.

When closing time came Julie approached the piano as always. They had been given a task to compose and play a song, and although she had started more or less well, the project was getting a bit stuck. And that was weird.

According to Flynn it was Luke's fault, because now he was the only thing on Julie's mind. But according to Julie that was a lie. In fact it was almost the other way around, her problem was that she had too many songs in her head (maybe some inspired by him, yes), and that made it difficult to concentrate.

By the time she realized how long she had been at the piano, the only one still in the cafeteria was Luke. And apart from blushing completely Julie could only think about how she would kill her friend.

"Oh, sorry. I'm holding you back. Sorry. I’ve lost track of time. I…” The excuses came out of her mouth one after another, and she could only stop when he started to laugh.

"Do not worry. You were so focused that I didn't want to bother you ” Julie had never before seen such a pretty and sincere smile as Luke's. And just by seeing it she came up with dozens of songs to dedicate to that and to his eyes. "It's yours, right?"

"Yes. It's a, a class assignment ”, she replied, turning her eyes to the piano. And although it took a while, she was able to hear Flynn's voice inside her head and she knew that if she didn't ask him, then her friend would kill her. "What do you think?" She finally asked.

Luke's confused and excited face just made her want to go hug him. She was not able to understand how there could be someone so adorable in the world.

"Do you want to know what I think?"

“Well, sure. You compose too. And you’re very good too. " As she said the last Julie wanted to hit a hammer on the head and flee. If she didn't, it was just because of Luke's smile that left her paralyzed.

"Ah, I, thank you. That’s not. Just a little,” he said, clearly short-circuiting. "In any case," he continued to approach the piano. “I like the melody. You play very well. Do you have lyrics?"

“I only have a couple of verses. I'm still working on it. It's like the lyrics are trapped inside my head. They don't want to go out, ” she replied, looking away.

"Do you need help?" From their faces Julie was not sure which of the two was more surprised by the offer.

"Are you serious?" Julie had spent several days with Luke's lyrics in her head and playing in a loop on her mobile. He really seemed like a great lyricist to her, and she wasn't going to deny that the opportunity to write with him enchanted her.

"Sure. Show me what you have." Finally he sat down on a chair that he had brought up, with the guitar that was there for people to play.

Julie watched him attentively for a couple of minutes as he tuned it up and played a couple of notes that sounded surprisingly similar to her song. When he seemed happy, he looked at her with that smile of his that caused her brain to not work quite well. When she managed to wake up she began to play.

_Sometimes I think I'm falling down_

_I wanna cry, I'm calling out_

_For one more try to feel alive_

_And when I feel lost and alone_

_I know that I can make it home_

_Fight through the dark and find the spark_.

_Life is a risk, but I will take it_

_Close my eyes and jump._

_Together I think that we can make it_

_Come on, let's run_

_And rise through the night, you and I_

_We will fight to shine together, bright forever_

That was where she was getting stuck. So she continued with the piano alone until the next chorus came along. When she finished she turned to look at him. But Luke had his eyes closed in concentration, shaking his head up and down until he suddenly looked up at her with a smile.

"Play the first chorus again and tell me what you think," he said, beginning to imitate the melody on the guitar. She did as he asked, keeping an eye on him when she sang the last word. When he started singing she stopped playing with a face of disbelief.

_And rise through the night, you and I_

_We will fight to shine together, bright forever._

_In times that I doubted myself_

_I felt like I needed somе help_

_Stuck in my head, with nothing left._

_I feel something around me now_

_So unclear, lifting me out_

_I found the ground, I'm marching on._

"How about that?" He asked, biting his lip nervously.

"I like it. Tell me what you think of this, for the last chorus." After hearing him sing the lyrics flowed back into her head full force.

_In times that I doubted myself_

_I felt like I needed some help_

_Stuck in my head, with nothing left_

_And when I feel lost and alone_

_I know that I can make it home_

_Fight through the dark and find the spark._

“And you can end with another chorus! Raising the tone a bit would be great”, he agreed excitedly. Julie couldn't help but compare him to a puppy in her head.

"Thank you very much. Can you give me a second to write it all down and then we can go? I'm really sorry for holding you back so much. I hope they don't tell you anything for being so late. "

"They are not going to do it, no," he said with a grimace, leaving the guitar in place. "If you need anything else, tell me, I'm going to turn off the lights in the back." Before Julie had time to try to stop him, he disappeared into the back room. That had been weird, a very abrupt change in mood.

When she finished writing everything down, thinking she had picked up Luke's writing the first time, she put the notebook back in her backpack and met the boy at the door. They stood there for a moment, looking at each other until Luke took a step back.

"Thanks for everything. Seriously. You have saved my life, and my grades, ”she commented laughing.

“Ir was nothing. If you need help you can always tell me, that's what I'm for "

_"I still need you to help me with my crush "_ she thought, unable to move under his watchful eye. Although luckily he didn't say anything.

With a few final words of farewell, Julie turned to go to the bus stop, but she did not take two steps before Luke's voice stopped her.

"Do you want me to drive you home?" He asked, pointing to what was clearly his van, if the name _Sunset curve_ on the side was indicative of something. "It seems a bit late for the bus to me."

"Are you sure? It's not necessary,” she tried to excuse herself. She didn't think she could hold out with him any longer without screaming with excitement.

“Sure it does. Come on, get on. "

After that Julie didn't have many options. She got in the van and put the GPS on her mobile to guide them. Then there was silence until Luke began to sing. The song they just wrote together. _Their_ song?

"I think it sounds better on your register," she murmured when he finished.

“You should still do it. Step on it. You have a voice that would sound good in any style." He only seemed to be aware of his words after saying them, because he quickly closed his mouth right after.

The rest of the way they did it in silence. They both looked uncomfortable and it was clear that they were eager to get home to relax. And at least in Julie's case to be able to call Flynn and scream really loud. Everything seemed so surreal to her that she was still not sure what had happened.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Friendship chapter! Or at least a try at it.
> 
> Hope you like it!

That call was one of the most surreal in history. First there were angry screams, although that was short. The good part started right after, when Julie spent fifteen minutes (Flynn had calculated it, yes) talking about how wonderful Luke was.

“I mean it, Flynn. It has been magical. It was as if we connected”, she commented at the time. “I don't know, I just can't explain it. But it's been so… so… ”

“ Magical? ” She cut her off by putting the phone on speaker. She was clearly happy for her friend, how could she not be after so long? But it was getting a bit long and repetitive.

"Yes! It's just that everything worked out so well. And he's so talented, he learned the melody without me even realizing it, and then it took him a minute to think of a verse. "

Julie kept talking, but Flynn's attention was distracted for a second. She had to let Alex know about that. She didn't understand how it could have taken so long to do it.

[Me, 22:47] HAVE YOU HEARD? 

[Me, 22:47] They're sooo cute

[Me, 22:47] Tell me that he told you something.

[Me, 22:48] I CAN'T TAKE IT MORE WITH THIS TENSION. 

[Drumroll boy, 22:48] No

[Drumroll boy, 22:48] WHAT HAPPENED

[Drumroll boy, 22:48] ????*

[Me, 22:49] Write Luke and let him tell you.

[Me, 22:49] Jules is giving me diabetes.

Speaking of Julie, Flynn turned her attention to her, who was still babbling about how wonderful the experience had been.

“Also it has helped me. In general, I mean. It has been a long time since I had ideas to write, and now I have a couple in mind. It's all so..."

" Perfect? " She cut her off laughing. “He hit you really hard, Jules. Now you just have to talk to him and get a date."

"Of course not! That's not gonna happen. He doesn’t like me. He only helped me because he is kind, do not look for things that are not.

"But you wish they were, right? Girl, if you don't risk you won't win. You have to go for it all. Besides, no matter how much you say it, no one is THAT nice. That boy likes you. Trust me".

"I mean, I hope that was true," she replied laughing. "Well, I'm going to have to hang up on you now, it's too late and my mom has already come in once looking at me badly. See you tomorrow."

“Okay, sleep well, loser. Dream about your waiter," she said laughing, and hung up before she had time to reply.

After that Flynn had to yell at her pillow a bit too, just like her friend had been doing the last few minutes. After so many conversations, she was also quite involved in that relationship and knowing that it was progressing, even if it was little by little, made her immensely happy.

She was about to send another message to Alex to know what he had discovered, but had no time to do so before a call from the boy entered.

When Luke returned to the study he found Reggie and Alex there. That was weird, and disturbing. So no matter how happy he returned after being with Julie, his face changed to one of concern when he approached them.

"What happened?" He asked sitting next to them on the sofa-bed.

"The usual," Alex mumbled simply, looking down at his hands.

"Do you want to talk about it?" He asked, turning to face back to back the drummer.

As much as Alex always complained about not being hugged, he was not really a fan of physical contact. So that was a way to comfort him without weighing him down. Since no one was looking at him he felt freer to cry or vent, but the weight against his back reminded him that he was not alone.

For his part, Reggie sat on the floor, his arms resting on the bed, and got closer to Luke to whisper a few words: "Bobby doesn't answer, we assume he's already asleep."

"The truth is: I don't know," Alex replied, gently tapping his head against his friend's. “It's mostly disappointment. I believed, I really believed that they were doing better. My mother even asked me about Willie the other day. But suddenly, everything has gone back to being bad. And there have been a lot of screaming, you know I can't stand screaming. "

"You can only stand it if it’s yours," Reggie added, causing even Alex to laugh a little with his words.

"That I grant you" he nodded smiling.

"Would you like to stay here? We can watch movies. And I'm even willing to talk about how handsome your boyfriend is with braids." At those words Alex burst out laughing and pushed Luke off the bed.

"My boyfriend is always handsome, excuse you!" Alex's cell phone began to vibrate with several consecutive messages. And assuming it was her parents or Willie he gave him privacy and went to the small bathroom to change into his pajamas.

When he came back Alex had a better face. He had sat cross-legged on the bed with Reggie beside him, both looking at him the same way: smiling sincerely and with ill-contained emotion.

“By the way, changing the subject. Where do you come from so late?"

“Oh, from the cafeteria. I had to stay to close” he excused himself, sitting down on the bed. But he was unable to meet their eyes when he said it. As soon as he thought about Julie again, the silly smile returned to his face, he couldn't help it.

"The audacity to come and lie to our faces ..." the drummer wailed. "Tell us! You leave work at nine and arrive almost an hour and a half later looking like that. With that smile. Either you tell us or you sleep on the floor. We don't care if this is your bed."

"OK OK. You're a bad person” he complained looking down at the ground. “It was just that Julie wanted to stay longer with the piano. She was doing a class assignment and I thought it was wrong to throw her out. Besides, I had the van to go back, so I didn’t care. "

"She just wanted to stay ..." Reggie mimicked. Although his voice was not at all like what he was doing. "When are you going to talk to her? Or at least admit you have a bad crush on the poor girl? We have been waiting for your confession for a while. "

"No I do not. It's not that,” he muttered nervously. Although under their gaze he could not but admit it. “Well, I might be interested in her. A little. Only a little".

"It's better than nothing," Alex replied laughing. "And now are you going to tell us the truth?"

“I've been helping her write a song for class. She was a bit stuck and I thought it was okay to help her. Also, I like her voice and it was a good excuse to hear her sing up close ”.

“You are disgustingly cute. I can't stand you ”Alex complained jokingly. "One second".

Under Luke's watchful eye, he picked up his phone again, at which point the guitarist took the opportunity to put his own to charge.

"Keep telling," Alex said then, putting the phone on the bed. "What are you going to do now?"

"Nothing, for what? Anyway, I don't think she likes me. And I'm not going to make things uncomfortable with her. It hurts, but I'm fine like this. "

"It is not true. You don't lose anything by trying, she won't hate you or anything like that. Even if she doesn't like you, which I'm sure she does, nothing happens either,” Reggie replied.

“It happens that I make a fool of myself. It's not that easy to talk to her, I freeze "

" Then don't talk to her. Sing. Are you a musician or not? Because the fact is that if you don't take advantage of it to flirt, you don't count as a musician. "

"You're an idiot," he laughed, throwing a pillow at him. “But still the song is not a bad idea. I do feel more inspired after playing with her. I think I have a song wanting to come out ”.

"That’s it. So ... Look me in the eye when I'm talking to you, Luke," Alex chimed in. "So tomorrow you're going to talk to her, or you're going to sing to her. At the consumer's taste. But you are going to ask her for a date. Because you're cool and she's going to say yes. Okay?"

"I don't know, Alex ..."

"Okay?!" He repeated with more force

“Okay, okay. I'll do my best. I swear." He finally agreed, looking away again.

“That’s what I like to hear. That's my Luke! " He exclaimed laughing.

They didn't see any movies in the end, and they didn't talk about Willie's braids either, thankfully. But they did spend the rest of the night chatting, confessing their feelings. Taking advantage of the fact that they were alone to say everything they had been saving for weeks, how much they suffered for their families.

And they may have stayed up late. But when they went to sleep, together in the same bed with a pillow spread between them so Alex wouldn't be overwhelmed, they were happy. They felt safe and capable of dealing with anything.

After all, this study was their sanctuary, their happy place. And nothing could stop them if they were together.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay, new chapter xD
> 
> If you haven't noticed yet I just love Flynn. Especially in this story, where everything is thank to her (and a little bit to Alex) xD

The first to wake up the next morning was Luke, courtesy of a kick from Reggie. That boy moved too much in his dreams. And with the little space they had, it was clear that was going to happen.

When he cleared up his mind a bit, he grabbed his guitar and notebook and went outside, not wanting to wake the others. Sitting on a bench near the door, he started trying to compose a song for Julie. But it was a lot more complicated than he thought.

The night before, inspiration had flowed through him, both in the cafeteria and later when he returned home. But after a night's rest he had completely lost it. He kept having ideas in his head, he noticed them; but they didn't want to go out. Every time he tried to focus on them they fled, slipped through his fingers.

With a last growl of frustration he shifted his fingers to change the tune. Maybe if he played Julie's song again he was able to feel the inspiration. Nor was it that he had anything to lose by trying.

The bad thing is that no matter how hard he tried, he got nothing. He played the song a couple of times, surprised to be able to remember almost all the words.

"That's a pretty one," a voice next to him said out of nowhere. From the shock, his guitar almost fell to the ground. Laughing Reggie sat next to him, a packet of cookies in hand. "Is this your song for Julie?"

“No, it's Julie's song. The one we wrote yesterday,” he replied, leaving the instrument resting beside him.

“And have you learned it? I think it hit you stronger than I thought”, he commented laughing. Seeing Luke's grimace, he tapped him with his shoulder and offered him a cookie. "It's going to be fine".

"I don't know... Lately I feel out of the game," he said, taking a bite of the cookie. "I'm a little scared to screw it up."

"Do you really care that much?"

"I guess so. I don't know. It's weird,” he said, putting his hands to his head and shaking it. "I don’t know what is happening to me."

"At first I was like that with Willie too," Alex said sitting down with them with a sleepy face. “It will pass in time. What time is it, by the way?"

"Half past nine," Reggie replied, checking his phone. Between complaints, the drummer got up again, and the three of them went laughing back to bed.

There Bobby found them when he arrived an hour later. They were still in their pajamas and with all the pillows scattered on the floor. 

"I’ve come as soon as I saw the messages" he said bringing a chair to sit. "Anything to comment?"

“Nah, everything's fine now. It was just a momentary crisis,” Alex replied with a smile.

"Well, since the four of us are here, we can take the opportunity to rehearse," Luke said, getting up to pick up his guitar. "Come on!" He said impatiently when he saw that his friends were not moving.

Finally they got up and spent the rest of the morning rehearsing, enjoying their music and taking the opportunity to vent. 

By the time Luke got to work that afternoon he was already tired. His back ached from sleeping in a bad position and when he tried to turn his neck fast he felt a sting. His shift had just started and he just wanted it to end.

He spent the day almost like a zombie. He himself had a couple of coffees just to stay awake and with a more or less decent face. Still when it was time to close he was relieved.

While he was picking up everything he listened to Julie play the piano, a new song. It was a nice one, calm and with a melody that spoke to him of longing. It was awesome how much that girl was able to convey even without words. Luke had no doubt that she was going to go far in the music world.

As he put away the last of the cups, Flynn walked to the counter with a smile that didn't make him feel calm for some reason.

"Do you have something to do on Friday at eleven?" She asked before Luke had time to say hello.

"Excuse me?" He replied in surprise.

"On Friday. At eleven,” she repeated with an annoyed face.

“I… I'm sorry, Flynn; but I'm not interested ”.

"Don’t be an idiot!" She exclaimed, rolling her eyes. “On Friday at eleven we obviously have class. It's Julie's performance. And since you helped her I thought you would want to go. How did you think you interested me?" She said with a grimace.

"It's not my fault. Without context it sounded strange”, he defended himself, blushing. "But if it's for that: no, I have nothing to do."

"Great. I'll tell Julie. A duet is going to be great”. And with those words she left, leaving Luke more confused if possible and with a silly face. 

What duet? He hadn't committed to that. No, it couldn't be. If he sang with Julie, he would look like an idiot. More than usual.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, another short chapter yaay xD
> 
> Hope you like it!

When she finished playing she returned to the real world.

It was very easy for Julie to lose herself in the melodies and forget that there were actually more things than music. But as soon as the last notes disappeared, she was back to reality. She would return to the cafeteria and to the applause of the few friends that remained there.

Trying to do it in a sneaky way, she turned his gaze to Luke, who was paralyzed, with a surprised face and his eyes fixed on Flynn, who was smiling at him from a table. That made Julie fear. From the look her friend made, equal parts satisfaction and machinations. She couldn't have done anything good.

Still looking at her friend with caution, she picked up her backpack and prepared to leave. She had stayed up late last night writing a couple of new songs, one of which she had just played, and that meant she hadn't gotten all the rest she should have.

As she did every day, she sat down at her table again to wait for her mother to close the cafeteria so they could go home. The first few days she had tried to make her leave earlier, so that she could rest and take advantage of the time at home to rehearse. But Julie had refused to do so. She liked staying with her mother and having the opportunity to play there when the place was empty. And in truth, she also liked to stay partially for Luke.

She wasn't talking to him, that was true; but she was indeed trying to get the courage to do it. As she had done the day before. Now she only needed to make a routine of that, or at least exchange a few more words than the ones she used to ask for her order every day.

“I think I'm going to go talk to him. Should I?" She asked her friend with a discreet glance at the waiter.

"It's going to surprise you that I say this, but I don't think so," she replied, putting her phone on the table. "It would be a bit awkward."

"Why would it be?" She asked, looking at her suspiciously. "Flynn please tell me you haven't said anything weird to him," she begged with fear in her eyes.

"Well… define weird," she said with a slightly odd grin. “It is more than anything that I have asked him to do you a favor. I've done you a favor. And him. And me. "

“You’ve lost me, Flynn. What have you done? "

"I've asked him to play with you on Friday," she murmured, looking down at the table. And at that precise moment Julie wanted the earth to open up and swallow her. She can not believe it. That had to be some kind of dream, a nightmare. She was silent for so long that Flynn ended up looking up in fear. “But he said yes. It's something good. Anyway, the song belongs to both of you, and you said yourself that it sounded better with his voice. "

"But something like this would never have crossed my mind!" She screamed, unable to contain herself. Although after the scream she seemed to realize what she had done and lowered her head. “I can't play with him. What if I get stuck? "

“You play for him every afternoon, Julie. And yesterday you gave him a private mini concert. Nothing will happen. Also, the teacher said that we could play with who we wanted. That’s him. "

Julie couldn't believe it. There was a part of her that was excited, she was going to have the opportunity to sing with Luke; but there was another part of her that didn't find it so pleasant. There were too many things that could go wrong. There were too many things that were going to go wrong.

Anyway, there was little use in lamenting now. If she went and told Luke that she didn't want to play with him in the end it could be worse. She would have to explain why and she was definitely not ready for that. Because of Flynn she was trapped now. She was going to have to act with him whether she wanted to or not.

Coming from the counter, she heard the voices of her mother and Luke, who were already saying their goodbyes. Shortly after, the boy passed behind their table. For a moment they stared at each other, neither able to speak. And although for a moment she swore that he was going to approach them, in the end he decided not to and said goodbye with only a wave of his hand.

"I think he's not very happy," Julie murmured when she saw that the door closed behind him.

“Nah, he'll be in a hurry or something. Who wouldn't want to sing with you? "

“Don't think I'm going to forgive you just for a couple of compliments. I'm angry at you".

Actually, no matter how much she said, she was not capable of being angry with her friend. Upset? Well the truth is that a lot. But deep down she knew that Flynn had done it with good intentions, so she couldn't be mad at her.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm trying my best, but I'm not sure if this is making any sense. Hope it does.
> 
> And also, hope you like it! ^_^

Luke likes to ride the bus. It took him a long time to get to the cafeteria, but those were minutes he could use to think. And he definitely had a lot to think about.

A part of his brain was still blocked from the conversation with Flynn. And no matter how much he thought about it, he wasn't very clear how he had ended up committing to sing with Julie. That is to say, it's not that he wasn't really excited about it. But he was afraid of getting stuck while playing with her.

It was one thing to sing close to her, as he had done on her birthday or Monday; but to sing  _ with _ her, by her side having to harmonize together and above all knowing that she was going to get a grade out of it. That, that was entirely something else that he wasn't prepared for.

Less after having promised Alex that he would sing to her to confess. That was too close for his liking and he feared that if he didn't do it at that moment in the end it would be the drummer who would tell Julie everything just so he wouldn't have to put up with Luke anymore.

When he got to his stop he was very tempted not to get off. If he continued the journey he would arrive somewhere where he could start a new life. But of course, he had already done that once and he still regretted it. He wasn't going to back down, no; but he would have liked to do it differently.

He entered the cafeteria with a slow step, not ready to meet Julie, although it was obvious that he had to talk to her. If he was really going to sing with her on Friday they would have to rehearse, divide the parts of the song and make arrangements. There was a lot to think about, to top it off with the drama that was unfolding in his head.

He moved behind the counter, basically feeling like he was going to be killed at any moment. Was he exaggerating? Well probably yes; but that didn't take away the nerves I felt.

When Julie walked through the door, laughing with Flynn, Luke wanted to disappear through the back door and never return to the cafeteria. However, before he had time to do that she turned her head towards him. And Luke could swear she gave him a smile. Then she separated from Flynn, who went to sit at a table, and went to him alone.

And the truth is, Luke panicked a bit. So even though he could clearly see that she wanted to speak, he cut her off before she could.

"What do you want?" He exclaimed with his best smile.

"Ah. Two coffees and a muffin,” she said, taking a small step back in surprise. With a nod, Luke turned, concentrating on preparing the command and getting ready to speak to Julie.

Not even close enough time for it. But it would have to be. Because in the long run it would be more uncomfortable if he pretended there was nothing to deal with.

"So ..." He said placing the cups on a tray. "Eh, I think Flynn asked me to sing with you this Friday."

"Yes. I told her that you had helped me write the song and she thought it would be best to sing it together. But I understand perfectly if you want to back down. "

“Oh, would you rather sing alone? Well that is fine. The song sounded great as a solo."

"Not! No,” she repeated lower. “I would love to sing with you. I think the song would work very well like that. I was saying it in case you wanted to back down. "

"Of course not. I would love to,” he replied with a smile. “But we will have to rehearse. And since you have class in the morning that’s going to be a bit complicated. "

"We can rehearse in the afternoon, when your shift is over," Julie said with a smile. He had never seen such a beautiful smile in his life. “We can rehearse here, if you want. I don't think my mother would mind. "

The plan sounded quite surreal, staying there to rehearse with her was almost a kind of dream, and at the same time it made him feel a bit uncomfortable and nervous. The fact is that there was no going back in any way, so he only had the option of trying as hard as he could.

When the cafeteria was empty and they were alone they went to the instruments and began to practice the song. And in the end it turned out that playing a duet wasn't that weird for them. They were able to agree pretty quickly which part each should sing. And when they had to sing the chorus their voices harmonized perfectly.

That didn't mean that Luke didn’t feel a little out of place in the song. It was undeniable that the ballad was a beautiful genre, he knew how to appreciate them and he had written one or two himself. But knowing that he was going to have to sing one in front of all of Julie's class, of the people who came to the cafeteria every afternoon, made him feel uncomfortable.

"What happens?" The girl asked him when they finished the song for the third time.

"Nothing. It's just that I'm not used to this style. But it's a matter of rehearsing,” he said, smiling at her.

“You sure? You don't seem comfortable or convinced. "

"Don’t worry. I can play ballads if necessary. Although… We can always do a mix,” he proposed, leaving the guitar aside. “We can leave your part of the beginning more ballad type, and then put more rhythm and energy into the chorus when I enter. I can ask my friends to play with us if more instruments are needed. How about?"

"Would they accept? I also don't want to be a bother to them or anything. I guess you already have a lot of trouble with the band and all ”.

“I'm not saying that’s not true, but I'm sure they will accept. It's still an opportunity to play,” he replied, dismissing it with a wave of his hand. "So, is that alright?"

"Sure. Let's do that,” she replied with a smile almost as wide as his. 


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some Reggie 'cause I NEED it ^^
> 
> Aaand, the actuation is coming 👀

Reggie was probably one of the few people who thought that the summer was too long.

He didn't like going to high school, definitely not. But since he had to spend there all morning, he had an excuse not to be at home. In addition, since he was not a genius, he had to spend many afternoons locked in his room doing homework and studying.

In summer he didn't have that. But luckily he still had the band. Every morning he would walk for ten minutes, then get on a bus, and then walk another five minutes to the studio. And there he finally felt completely fine. It didn't last long, because his friends had to work, do things, or just hang out with other people.

But the mornings were peaceful. At least almost all of them.

"You did what?" Bobby asked with a frown.

"Come on, it could be fun," Luke said with a grimace at his reaction. "The song is good and we can try something new for the band."

"Why would we want anything new? We are doing well. I’ll remind you that we have a performance next week, and we have to rehearse our songs. "

“It will not take so much time from us. It is a single song and it’s this Friday”, he defended himself.

"Sounds like a good idea to me," Alex intervened from behind the drums. “I remind you that many of those kids have parents who are involved in the music industry. It may even come in handy. "

"Let's vote!" Reggie exclaimed then with a smile. He was not going to allow anyone to argue in his presence, especially not for something so stupid. "Those who are in favor of playing this Friday raise your hand." He was the first to raise his own, followed quickly by Luke and Alex. Bobby, under the watchful eyes of his companions, ended up raising his also, rolling his eyes.

“If you can't beat them, join them; or so they say."

"Great!" Luke exclaimed with a huge smile. He went to get his notebook and as he passed by Reggie he shook his shoulder happily. “Yesterday we made some arrangements, but we need to agree on exactly how the song is going to be. If we prepare it now, we can all rehearse together tonight and see how it goes. "

"Tonight? Does that mean I can sleep here?" The bass player asked excitedly. Any excuse to spend the night with his friends made him immensely happy.

"Sure. We will come when my shift is over and we’ll all rehearse together. "

"Isn't that a little late?" Alex asked with a grimace.

“Yeah, but she has classes in the morning and I work the afternoons. It's when we all can. "

"And she can't skip classes?" Bobby asked sitting down on a stool that he had pulled over to read the lyrics.

"No. Apparently she has a deal with her father and refuses to. I've already tried,” Luke replied, shaking his head.

After they had all agreed, they sat down to write the melody as they had done hundreds of times before. The first seconds of the song were left as they were, and they would simply wait for the chorus to start playing. Between the four of them they created a melody that matched the base they already had and that was more of their style.

They played it several times until they were happy and then, not wanting to neglect their own songs either, they spent a couple of hours practicing for their future performance.

When they finished eating, all together in the small (almost nonexistent in fact) kitchen of the study; Reggie was not sure what to do. He already had clothes in the studio, so he didn't need to stop by his house, and unlike his friends he had nowhere to go.

So he did the only thing he could think of: he stayed there. He stayed watching some series sitting on the sofa-bed with a tub of ice cream that he would replace for Luke; or not, rather not. Lately he had been fond of the cowboy series, and it was surprising how many there were.

When it was time for dinner Alex returned with a silly smile, the same one he always wore when he had spent time with his boyfriend. And the truth is, Reggie couldn't help but feel a little jealous. Alex had Willie, Luke would soon have Julie (of that he was sure) and Bobby had this mysterious girl, whom for some reason refused to introduce them. He was the only one who had no one, and what hurt the most is that it was not for lack of trying.

Shortly after nine, Bobby arrived, and a few minutes later Luke and Julie did. 

At first it was a bit awkward, especially since they didn't have a piano there to rehearse and the girl was uncomfortable singing a capella. So they mostly dedicated themselves to practicing the shared part and although it was obvious that the girl was not used to that style by the way she modulated her voice, it did sound good, or at least interesting.


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had this ready yesterday, but had a little breakdown and couldn't post it, haha
> 
> So here it goes, hope it's good xD

Friday came too early.

The performance was not until eleven o'clock, but the boys arrived at the academy almost half an hour early. None of them had been to class before during the summer, and seeing that it was very similar to high school the rest of the year left them a bit confused.

The hallways were almost empty, because almost everyone was at their lessons. They barely passed a couple of people. When they reached the auditorium they finally found Julie and Flynn at the door. Seeing the two girls, Luke's nerves even increased. It was still hard to believe that he had agreed to play with her. And more considering that they were going to put a grade on her based on how they played.

"Ready?" Julie asked them when they got to her side. He had a decorated white microphone in her hand and was looking alternately between them and into the auditorium, where a group of girls in colorful costumes were performing.

"Ready!" Reggie agreed with a smile. Like Luke and Bobby, he carried a case on his back, in which they kept their instruments. For his part, Alex only brought his drumsticks. Moving the drums was exhausting and they already had one there.

“We can go to the stage area,” she said, pointing to a small door on the side. "There you can make sure the instruments are in tune and everything works."

Waiting standing by the stage for the previous performance to end wasn't helping Luke's nerves. He kept wiggling his fingers to make sure he was able to play each note, as if he hadn't been doing it for years. And on top of that the looks his friends were throwing him weren't helping either.

When they were called on stage, a part of Luke wanted to run and not look back, but it was still a bit late. So he plucked up his courage and got on the stage with Julie and his friends.

"Hello," she said sitting down at the piano. "I'm Julie Molina and they are  _ Sunset  _ curve", she continued pointing them with her hand. "The song we're going to play is called  _ Bright _ . We hope you like it."

When she started to play much of Luke's nervousness disappeared. He could only focus on the way she was moving to get to all the notes without straying one bit from the mic so she could still be heard well.

Before he knew how much time had passed, it was their turn to enter. Behind him Alex gave a first drum beat that brought him back to reality and in an instant his fingers were moving. He smiled widely. The music took over their actions, as happened every time they performed and without being barely aware of it he began to move around the stage.

First he went to Julie, playing while she sang and was slowly moving towards the center of the stage. When she took center stage he kept backing away a bit, towards Bobby who mostly stayed in place while they performed. He barely played a couple of chords beside him before having to go back to his microphone.

His part of the song arrived and he began to sing excitedly. Julie's classmates were looking at them, they were jumping to the song and Luke was proud to see that his music could do that. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Julie dance with Reggie and Alex, like they did in rehearsals. Soon Reggie approached him, as they did in every song, and for part of the verse they sang into the same mic.

After that the bassist had to walk away to go to the forgotten piano, to play a short melody with it after the next chorus. Luke kept looking at Julie from time to time as he sang, she put so much passion in her music that it was almost hypnotic.

When he saw her approach, with the microphone raised so that he could sing with that one, he could not resist it. They hadn't rehearsed that, but neither could he worry about it nor did their parts overlapped. His eyes were fixed on hers, lost in the joy that he saw in them, and although he heard a shout from the audience, he did not have time to think about it.

When Julie's part arrived, he gestured with his head for her to turn and when he saw that she was crouching, he approached the girl's back, playing by her side with a smile. Being so close to her made him happy, while still making him a little nervous. But with his head on music, he only realized the positive parts.

The song was slowly getting closer to the end, so he went back to his mic to sing the last chorus with everyone, ending with their voices rising together and a little drumroll courtesy of Alex. As soon as they finished, the applause from the audience began.

They all bowed with a smile and then the boys took a step back. 

“Thank you, we hope you liked it. Again, I am Julie and they are  _ Sunset curve _ ”, she said smiling.

"Tell your friends!" Reggie exclaimed, making himself heard even without a microphone. After that they left the stage happy, basking in the adrenaline they felt and enjoying the applause they left behind.

The idea of playing together had enchanted Julie at first, but as the day approached and the rehearsals followed, she became more and more nervous. Luckily it was already Friday and soon it would all be over.

The hardest thing was waiting to get out. The boys moved around her, getting ready and warming up. They were used to it and it showed.

On stage Julie was glad to have his presence. She was used to playing alone, but knowing that there were four people by her side supporting her reassured her.

She started playing, letting the melody and lyrics take all her thoughts. Little by little the emotion grew inside her, and by the time the boys came in she just wanted to sing and jump. That music was not her style, she loved listening to it and his mother had taught him numerous rock bands before; but she had always sung other kinds of music. Until that moment.

She was getting closer to the boys, dancing with them and back and forth across the stage. Singing that way made her feel free. To her right Luke began to sing his part, and for a moment she stared at him dumbfounded. The way he sang the words, the way he moved and smiled at the audience, all of this gave him an enormous magnetism. 

When she could finally stop looking at him she walked over to Reggie, dancing with him briefly before turning to Alex as the bass player advanced towards Luke. Until the chorus Julie dedicated herself to dancing and jumping on stage, cheering her classmates with gestures, although that was completely unnecessary judging by the way they looked at Luke.

She continued singing on the chorus and when she finished she turned to look at the guitarist again. He sang with Reggie always, from what she understood. And a part of Julie could not help but wonder if he would be willing to sing with her. Before she could think about it, she advanced towards him, offering him the microphone. Still she was a bit surprised when he approached her, who repeated his words without making a sound.

Those eyes… Flynn was right about one thing, those eyes were going to be her downfall. They hypnotized her, she got lost in them every time he looked at her and she almost gasped, there on stage. Especially when he gestured for her to turn to the audience to sing her part. He did not leave, but instead he also leaned a little behind her, playing beside her.

It was surreal, all that performance had to be a dream, because it was clear that it was too perfect to be real. When they finished the song the outside world began to return little by little to her, seeing her classmates applaud them while bowing.

Julie said their goodbyes, saying a few last words before leaving the stage. The emotion she felt could not be expressed in words. In the same room where they had been preparing they met again, all happy and encouraging each other. Before she was aware of what was happening she was drawn into a group hug.

She was happy, almost ecstatic in fact. Especially since to her right, with his body close to hers and his arm around her waist, was Luke, who was jumping a little excitedly.


End file.
